Preparation of multiend yarn packages



W. BOLTON, JR PREPARATION OF MULTIEND YARN PACKAGES April 13, 1948.

Filed Sept. 12-, 1944 s Sheets-Sheet 1 fneyemr April 13, 1948.

w. BOLTON, JR

PREPARATION OF IIULTIEND YARN PACKAGES Filed Sept. 12, 1944 3 Shoet-Sheoi 2 Maillot; x2515. {y i%.

Patented Apr. 13, 1948 PREPARATION or MUL'IIEND YARN PACKAG Wright Bolton, in, New Bedford, Mass.

Application September 12, 1944, Serial No. 553,676

13 Claims. (01. 28-72.5)

This invention pertains to textile manufacture, and relates more particularly to the preparation of a multi-end yarn package or mass, for example a warp for use in weaving looms, the warp yarns being of glass or other similarly inexe tensible material. Heretofore it has been customary to use plied glass yarns in the manufacture of glass fabrics, that is to say, fabrics in which all of the constituentyarns, or at least the yarns of one set (warps or wefts), are of glass. Such fabrics are of particular utility in the electrical field since not only do they possess high dielectric properties, but they are flexible, substantially inert as respects reaction with most chemical reagents and immune to bacterial attack, and they are non-inflammable and substantially unaffected by temperature changes or moisture.

Ply yarns of glass'possess a certain degree of elastic extensibility (approximating that of the more usual organic textile yarns), and during the usual steps of cloth manufacture such plied glass yarns may be treated in substantially the same way as the usual organic textiles. However, in making certain types of glass fabric, particularly fabric which is very thin, it has become necessary to employ single strand glass yarns, and such single strand or untwisted glass yarns are found to possess characteristics, in particular substantially complete lack of elastic stretch, which introduce factors into cloth manufacture which are not encountered when using since otherwise excessive yarn breakage will occur. Manifestly it is likewise essential that the winding velocity of all of the individual yarns be substantially the same and thus it is necessary to insure the winding of each of said yarns so that its constituent turns he as nearly as is practicable in the same plane forming a substantially fiat spiral (or as it is sometimes termed a pancake coil) for if the individual yarns move substantially from one side to the other so as substantially. to overlap other yarns, they are tensioned nonunlformly, and as a result, during subsequent unwinding at the slasher, looseor slack ends occur, which is the cause of frequent snarling and breakage. The piecing together of broken warps of such materials is a slow, difficult and expensive operation. It is also desirable to deliver the several yarn'sfrom the warp sheet to the beam in sucha way that there is no possibility of contact of the marginal, inextensible yarns o! the warp sheet with the heads of the beam such as to deflect such marginal. yarns or cause them to be abraded.

The present invention has for its principal object a method of and a means for winding such single strand or untwisted glass or similarly inextensible yarns onto a warper beam directly from a creel, if desired, in such a way as to avoid breakage due to overtension or tension variation, a further object being to provide a yarn mass comprising, for example, several hundred ends of single strand or unspun glass or similarly inextensible yarns each of whose constituent yarns is individually wound substantially in the form of a pancake coil as above defined under uniform and equal tension, so that during the unwinding of the yarns from this mass, in the course of subsequent operations, the yarns will operation a great number of yarn ends, for instance several thousand, are drawn oil. from individual yarn packages upon the creel and wound in side-by-side relation to form a multiple'end mass on abeam. These yarns converge as they leave the creel so as to form a single, plane warp sheet as they approach the beam, each yarn passing through an individual tension on its way from the creel package to the beam.

When the warp beam is empty, its effective diameter is much less than when it is nearly full andwhen dealing with intenslble yarn, it is vitally important to insure substantial uniformity of winding velocity throughout the operation all be delivered under equal tension and without the formation of loose ends.

A further object is to provide a warper having provision for forming a multiple-end yarn mass which is hard, dense, ,and of uniform diameter from end to end and in which each individual yarn lies substantially in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the beam and without substantially overlapping adjacent yarns. A further object is to provide a warper having means for winding the yarn with a substantially uniform winding velocity from start to finish of the winding operation. A further object is to provide a warper in which the yarns, delivered in convergent relation from the creel, are directed into substantial parallelism as they approach the warp beam. Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will be pointed out inthe following more detailed description and by' reference to the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view, partly broken away, illustrating improved apparatus useful in the practice of the method of the present invention; V Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation, partly in vertical section and partly in broken lines, and to larger scale, showing details of means for applying pressure to the winding mass on the warp beam;

Fig. 4 is a, fragmentary plan view of the parts shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section, substantially on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4, showing the pressure- 7 applying roll and the warp beam in elevation;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary elevation (partly in diametrical section) to larger scale showing the warp beam and the yarns wound thereon as they appear after the yarns have been partially unwound;

Fig. '1 \is a radial section through the warp beam, illustrating the way in which an individual.

yarn is wound on the beam: and

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary, diametrical section through the beam shown in Fig. 7 and showing several coils of yarn mounted thereon, the yarns being shown to greatly enlarged scale.

Referring to the drawings the numeral I designates a creel or other suitable support, in which yarn packages '2 are mounted. As illustrated these yarn packages are mounted for rotation so that the yarn maybe unwound without drawing it over the end of the package, the creel being of any suitable or conventional type and preferably having individual yam tensions (not shown) for the individual yarns and having porcelain or other wear-resistant eyes in a support 3 through which the individual yarns Y are led from the creel toward the warper mechanism. As illustrated, these yarns Y converge toward a rear comb 5 which may, for example, be an expansible comb, and from this comb the yarns further converge to a comb 6 mounted on the frame of the warper 1,. This warper may be of generally conventional type, the usual details oi. which need not be described, having provision for rotatably supporting a beamcomprising a core or barrel 8 (Fig. 6) and spaced rigid heads 3 and I (Fig. 1). This beam may, for example, be a conventional section beam on whichyarns are wound in preparation for delivery to the slasher.

In accordance with the present invention, this beam is positively driven by suitable clutch mechanism ll including a rotary driven element designed for disengageable connection with one end of the beam, the clutch mechanism being driven by means of a sprocket chain l2 and a belt l3 from a variable speed mechanism F4, for example, a mechanism known to the trade as a Reeves" drive, which in turn is driven by a motor M. The variable speed mechanism is of a type in which the power delivery shaft may be rotated at different speeds, although the source of power, for example the motor M, has a driving shaft turning at a constant speed. The variation in delivery speed is determined by a manually actuable controller l so that the operator, by manipulating this controller, may vary the speed of the power delivery shaft and, in the present instance, may vary the angular speed of the beam.

The warper, as here illustrated, comprises a.

horizontal guide roll l6 beneath which the yams Y, emerging from the comb i, are passed, the I yarns then passing over parallel spaced horizontal guide rollers l1 and I8 between which. is arranged a vertically movable tension roller is.

The yarns then pass to a front comb 20 having a dent for each individual yarn, the endmost dents being spaced apart a distance accurately equaling the distance between the inner faces F of the heads 3 and In of the beam. This comb 20 guides the yarns Y and, in cooperation with a smooth surfaced front guide roll 2|, disposes the yarns in a, plane warp sheet in which the yarns are accurately parallel, the warp sheet, including the selvage yarns, being of a. width which is equal to the distance between the faces F of the beam heads.

At the front of the warper there are provided supports 22 in which the ends of a shaft 23 arejournaled. Between the journal portions of this. shaft, the latter is preferably square, as shown in Fig. 2, and. to this square portion of the shaft,.

gate rigid base of a cradle 21; This cradle mem-- ber has upstanding spaced end members having aligned openings in which are fixed the ends of two spaced parallel guide rods 23 and 29. A sleeve 30 is arranged to turn on the shaft 28, this sleeve 33 having a supporting roll 32 fixed to each of its ends. 0n the rear shaft 29 is arranged a nonrotatable sleeve 3! provided at its opposite ends with reduced portions on which freely turn the supporting rolls 33. The rolls 32 and 33 which form a part of the cradle 21, constitute supporting means for a pressure-applying roller 34. This roller 34 is of-hard rigid material, for example, steel, accurately ground to cylindrical form and is slightly less in length than the distance be-' The sleeve 3| (Fig. 3) is provided with a rigid arm 31" having an opening in which is housed a worm 38 (Fig. 4) fixed to the sleeve 30 and which meshes with a worm wheel 39 mounted on a stub shaft carried by the arm 31. This worm wheel is provided with an eccentrically located, downwardly directed pin 40 (Fig. 4) which enages an elongate slot 4! in a rigid arm 42 projecting forwardlyfrom the base of the cradle member 21. With this construction, rotation of the rolls 32 and sleeve 30 causes the worm wheel I 39 to rotate slowly and thus, by engagement of the pin 40 with the walls of the slot 4|, causes the arm 31, together with-the rolls 32 and 33, to move back and forth between the opposite ends of the cradle 21. Since the roll 34 rests on the rolls 32 and 33, a reciprocating movement is thus imparted to the roll 34, while the weights 25 act to urge the roll 30 bodily toward the winding yarn mass with substantial force.

When winding inextcnsible yarns such, for example, as single strand glass yarns on the barrel 8 of the beam, them is danger, if the outer or edge yarns of the sheet come in direct contact with the beam heads, that they will be abraded or deflected by irregularities in the beam heads,

thus resulting in immediate or'subsequent breakage. To avoid this difliculty it is proposed, in accordance with the present invention, to make the sheet of inextensible yarnsslightly less in width than the distance between the heads of the beam and to provide (Fig. 8) a certain number, for example from three to tens! selvage yarns T of or-- game, to wit, textile materal, at each margin of the sheet of glass warps. During winding, th'ese tensioned textile yarns an the space between the endmost inextenslble strands and the beam heads and thus support the endmost coils of inextensible yarn and prevent them from breaking down, while at the same time so spacing them from the beam heads thatv they cannot contact the latter. Since these textile yarns have the elasticity inherent in yarns of this type, they are capable of withstanding abrasion and a certain amount of deflection and overlapping during winding and unwinding without breakage, and if broken are easily pieced up, whereas single strand glass or similar yarns are not easily pieced. Thus, as above noted, in accordance with the pres-. ent invention, several textile yarns, here illustrated (Fig. 6) as three such yarns, are arranged to form a bore er at each selvage of the warp sheet, and during winding, th'ese textile selvage yarns engage the inner faces F of the beam and collectively form a yieldable cushion between the inner face of the beam and the outermost glass yarns Y.

Since the front comb 20 defines a warp sheet whose selvage yarns are spaced apart exactly I the width of the desired mass on the beam, and

since the yarns pass from this comb 20 directly to the beam (after moving about the accurately cylindrical guide roll 2|) each individual glass yarn winds on itself to form a spiral coil C such as is sometimes known as a pancake" coil, in which the successive turns of the coil all lie in substantially the same plane. Such a coil, in its theoretical perfection is illustrated, for example, in Fig. 8, where each of the coils C is shown as having the axes of its constituent turns all in a plane which is accurately perpendicular to the axis of the beam. Obviously, in actual practice, mathematical perfection cannot be expected. By thus laying the coils of glass yarn so that there is very little if any lateral traverse or deflection, a uniform tension of each of the several yarns is insured so that when the yarns are subsequently unwound, for instance in delivering them to the slasher, there is no tendency to form loose ends such as would result in snarling and breakage. It may be noted in this connection that whereas slight inequalities in tension are permissible in unwinding textile yarns at the slasher, since looseness' resulting from such inequalities is' usually automatically picked up as the yarns are rewound, this is not true in dealing with inextensible yarns like single strand glass yarns, the slackness once formed continuing and, as above suggested, resulting in breakage.-

In unwinding the yarns from the beam, it is not necessary to unwind the textile selvage yarns T during the unwinding of the glass yarns, these textile yarns remaining, as an annular cushion against the inner face of the warp beam, and thus continuing to protect the unwinding glass yarns until the entire mass on the beam is unwound. However, if preferred, the textile yarns may be unwound simultaneously with the unwinding of the glass yarns.

During the winding-on operation, the pressure roll 34 is pressed with very substantial force against the winding mass on the beam, thus compressing the winding yarns, and since the roll 34 is accurately cylindrical, the winding mass is maintained at uniform diameter, the pressure ansaecs nary step in the thus applied assisting in building'up the pancake coils as above described, the completed yarn mass being exceedingly dense and of uniform diameter. The rotation of the presser roll 34 by surface contact with the winding mass turns the supporting rolls 32 and thus turns the worm 38 which rotates the worm wheel 39, and thus, the eccentric pin 40, reciprocates the arm 31 and the rolls 32 andv 33. This axial movement of the supporting rolls causes the presser roll 34 to be reciprocated back and forth axially of the wind! ing mass to the extent permitted by the difference between the length of the roll 34 and the distance between the inner faces F of the beam heads. This reciprocation of the presser roll avoids the formation of grooves in the surface of the latter, such as might result from contactproducing the desired pressure on and uniformly of the winding mass.

In starting up the winding operation, after the yarn ends have been secured to the beam barrel, the operator so manipulates the control device l5 as to start the winding operation very slowly to avoid undue tension on the yarns, and thus to avoid breakage. After the beam has been started into operation the speed is increased to the maximum working velocity, and during the winding operation the operator from time to time manipulates the control device l5 so that as the diameter of the winding mass increases the angular velocity of the beam is diminished in such a way as to insure a substantially constant linear velocityof winding, and thus to avoid excessive speed such as might materials of different types or yarns of different numbers, and by proper care on the part of the operator it is possible to wind the mass on the beam with but very little yarn breakage.

When the beam is full, the supports 22 may be moved so as to disengage the presser roll 34 from the yarn mass, and the supports for the beam are then so manipulated as to permit the beam to be removed from the warper in the customary way and replaced by an empty beam. i

This novel method of preparing yarn packages is useful whether the warps are to be slashed or unslashed and is of especial value as a prelimipreparation of warps for extremely wide looms, for instance, a m 2| feet or more in width. For such purpose, a multiend yarn package may be prepared as above described containing for instance .2: ends of warp. of the desired material. where b is the total number of ends in the desired wide Warp and a: is an aliquot part of b, each end being of a length wx where w is the length of an end of the desired wide loom warp, and from this master multi-end package, in which the yarns are arranged, as above described, with great accuracy and under uniform and equal tension, the yarns are drawn off and Wound in succession onto a plurality of loom beams, in number x, the uniform and accurate placement of the yarns and by means of H cause breakage. Such control of the speed is also desirable in dealing with 4 beam containing stance, because of the accurate building inextensible yarns,

suppose it be desired to make a very wide warp having 40,000 ends each 1,000 yards long. In this case b=40,000 and w=l,000. Suppose that in making this very wide to be wound on ten beams and then simultaneously wound from these ten beams onto the one the 40,000 ends. In this instance m=l0. Then, in accordance with the present procedure, a beam would be wound containing ends, that is to say, this beam would contain 4,000 ends and eachend would be ten times 1,000

yards, or 10,000 yards long. After having prepared this beam in accordance with my invention, it would then be unwound and the 4,000 ends on this beam would be wound onto a warp beam so that this warp beam would contain 4,000 ends, each 1,000 yards long. The yarns would then be cut and a second warp beam similarly wound to have 1,000 yard-long ends, and so on until ten beams had been prepared. Oneach of these ten beams'there would be 4,000 ends each 1,000 yards long. These several beams would then be set up and their yarns all wound onto a. single very wide warp beam or their yarns would be delivered directly into the loom. In either inof the original package and the precision with which every yarn is laid with the same tension, it is possible, during these rewinding operations, to draw of! the yarns without danger of slack, breakage or snarling.

While certain desirable steps in the method of warp-the yarn is first f8 spective beam heads, and a body of organic yarn interposed between the ends of said wound mass preparing a multi-end yarn mass comprising inextensible yarns have herein been suggested by way of example, and while a desirable apparatus has been disclosed as useful in the performance ofthis method, it is to be'understood that the method is capable of performance by other specific means and that the apparatus may be modifled, if desired, and that such variations in the method steps and in the order of steps and such modifications of the apparatus as fall within the terms of the appended claims are to be regarded as within the scope of the invention.

I claim:

7 1. A yarn package comprising a plurality of cylindrical yarns of substantially inextensible material each yarn being wound in a spiral to form an individual pancake coil, the several coils being coaxial, the package being of uniform diameter from end to end and comprising abutments of extensible yarn, one at each end of the cylindrical mass of inelastic yarns.

2. A yam package comprising a rigidbarrel tively, and a yarn mass wound on the barrel between the heads, said yarn mass comprising end portions consisting of windings of organic textile yarn which abut the respective heads, and an intermediate portion consisting of substantially said intermediate portion being formed of a plurality of pancake coils the endmost of which abut and are supported by the windings of organic yarn.

. 3. A warp mounted on a beam having a barrel and spaced heads, said warp comprising a wound mass of substantially inelastic, substantially inextensible inorganic yarns and consisting of a great number of individual yarns each wound to form a pancake coil, saidcoils being coaxial and adjacent coils abutting each other, the ends of said wound mass being spaced from the rei being and the respective heads of the beam.

4. Method of preparing a wide warp which comprises winding yarn on a beam to form a master multi-end warp mass in which each individual yam forms a. pancake coil, the coils being coaxial and adjacent coils abutting each other, the yarn being wound under substantially equal and uniform tension and forming a mass which is of accurately uniform diameter from end to end. the number of said ends so wound s where b is the total number of yarns in the desired wide warp, and a: is an aliquot part of b. each of said ends being of a length in where w is thelength of an end of the desired wide warp, then rewinding from said master package, in succession onto a plurality of loom beams, in number x, then mounting all of said loom beams in a wide loom and drawing in all of the warp ends from all of said beams to form the desired wide warp.

5. A cylindrical yarn package comprising a plurality of single strand glass yarns'each wound in a spiral to form an indvidual pancake coil, the several coils being coaxial and with the radial faces of'adjacent coils in contact, all or the yarns eing under substantially the same tension, and the package being of uniform diameter from end to end, and an abutment for each end of the package consisting of wound yarns of relatively elastic material as compared with the single strand glass yarns.

6. That method of warping single-strand or untwisted glass yarn or yarn which is similarly inextensible so as to protect the yarn from abrasion by the heads of the warp beam during winding and unwinding, which comprises arranging the inextensible yarns to form a disposing a plurality of yarns of relatively extensible material to form cushioning selvages for said warp sheet, and simultaneously winding fie inextensible and extensible yarns on a warp '7. That method or warping single-strand or untwisted glass yarn or yarn which is similarly inextensible so as to avoid breakage of the inextensible yarn by contact with the heads of the warp beam during winding and unwinding, which comprises disposing the inextensible yarns to form a single plain sheet in which said yarns are disposed in parallel relation, assembling a plurality of organic textile yarns with the inextensible yarns to form cushioning selvages for said sheet, and simultaneously winding the inextensible and organic-textileyarns under substantially the same tension upon the barrel of a beam having spaced rigid heads to form a cylindrical yarn mass whose opposite ends consist of the organic textile yarns.

8. That'method or winding single-strand or untwisted glass or similarly inextensible yarn to form a warp mass whose endmost yarns are protected from abrasion, said method comprising disposing a plurality of the inextensible yarns in a plane and in accurately parallel relation to form a warp sheet, arranging relatively extensible yarns to form protective selvages for said sheet, the extensible yarns being parallel to the inextensible yarns, and winding the several yarns under tension while keeping the inextensible yarns, at least, in accurately parallel relation as they approach the winding-on point and while subjecting the periphery of the winding mass to plain warp sheet,

heavy pressure thereby causing the individual inextensible yarns to form coaxial coils, the endmost windingsof inextensible yarn abutting and being supported by windings of the extensible yarn.

9. That method of warping single-strand or untwisted glass or similarly inextensible yarn directly from a creel onto a warp beam having a barrel and spaced rigid heads which comprises as steps passing the inextensible yarns through a-stationary comb having an individual dent for each yarn, leading the yarns from the comb to the beam in accurately parallel relation and in a sheet of such width that the edge yarns oi the sheet are spaced from the respective heads of the beam, turning the beam at such a varying angular velocit as to maintain a uniform winding velocity at the peripheral surface of the yarn mass, maintaining a uniform diameter from end to end of the yarn mass, and, during winding, introducing means into the spaces between the inextensible edge yarns and the beam heads for supporting said edge yarns so that they form substantially plane coils.

10. That method of warping single-strand or untwisted glass yarns directly from a creel onto a warp beam having a barrel and spaced rigid heads which comprises as steps passing the yarns through a stationary comb having a separatedent for each individual yarn, from the comb to the beam in a sheet of such width that the inextensible edge yarns oi the sheet are spaced from the respective heads of the beam, the yarns as they approach the beam being accurately parallel, turning the beam at such a variable angular velocity that the peripheral velocity of the winding mass is substanleading the yarns tially constant,-pressing a cylindrical pressure-roll,

whose axis is accurately parallel to that oi. the beam, with sufficient pressure against the peripheral surface 01' the winding mass to insure a wound mass of accurately uniform diameter, and supporting the lnextensible edge yarns during winding by simultaneously winding cushioning yams oi extensible material upon the beam to fill the spaces between inextensible edge yarns.

11. A warp mounted on a beam having a rigid barrel and spaced heads, said warp consisting of a great number oi single-strand glass yarns each wound to form an individual coil, the radial the beam heads and said faces oi. adjacent coils being in contact and the endmost coils being spaced from the respective beam heads, and coils of relatively elastic yarn interposed between the beam heads and the radial faces of the endmost yarn coils.

supporting means consisting of a great number of single-strand, untwisted glass yarns each wound to form a coil, the radial faces of adjacent coils being in contact and the endmost coils being spaced from the respective beam heads, and a, plurality of coils of organic textile yarn interposed between the beam heads and the radial faces of the endmost yarn coils to support the endmost coils and to prevent them from breaking down.

13. A warp mounted on a beam having a rigid barrel and spaced heads, said warp consisting of a great number of single-strand, untwisted glass yarns each wound to form an individual coil, the radial faces of adjacent coils being in contact and the endmost coils being spaced from the respective beam heads, and at least three coils of yarn, of a material which is relatively soft and resilient as compared with the glass yarns, interposed between the endmost coils of glass yarn and the respective beam heads and operative to support the glass yarns comprising the endmost coils of the warp during the winding of the warp.

WRIGHT BOLTON, JR.

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